then. >> probably don't know? >> i'm joking. no, i have no idea. he says it's a hate crime. do you believe that? are you worried about israel's democracy in general? >> i think it's a difficult spot to be in every got to work it out. >> what you hope the prime minister will do on that particular law? >> i hope he walks away from it. mr. president, any reaction to russia sending tactical nuclear weapons to belarus? >> they haven't done that yet. >> but -- >> and less something happened while i was on the helicopter. >> are you concerned about that? >> sure i'm concerned about it. >> what do you make of putin's announcement that he would send those nuclear weapons development? >> what i talking to guys about for the last year, this is dangerous kind of talking uses, and it's a worrisome.

>> the senate is about to gavel in to finish work on the bill that repealed in 1991 and 2002 authorizations for use of military force against iraq. a final vote is set for 11:30 a.m. eastern. following that senators will vote on whether to move forward with legislation that extends federal programs providing local fire departments grants for training, equipment and staffing. additional votes are possible later in the day. we take you live now to the senate floor here on c-span2. the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. the chaplain, dr. barry black, will lead the senate in prayer.

the chaplain: let us pray. eternal god, you are our mighty fortress. lord, you have done wonderful deeds in our nation's history. when we have cried to you in seasons of distress, you have answered us. though our faith is sometimes small, inspire us to speak to our mountains until they move. we thank you for your promise in philippians 4:13 that we can do all things because of your strength. today, strengthen our lawmakers,

granting them courage and wisdom for the living of these days. and lord, we thank you for the heroism of the nashville police. we pray in your awesome name. amen. the presiding officer: please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to our flag. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the presiding officer: the clerk will read a communication to the senate. the clerk: washington, d.c, march 29, 2023. to the senate:

under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable peter welch, a senator from the state of vermont, to perform the duties of the chair. signed: patty murray, president pro tempore. the presiding test. test.

test.

mr. schumer: mr. president. the presiding officer: the majority leader. >> mister president, 4487 4487. that, mister president is the number of american service members perished in iraq by the time the last troops deployed in 2011 over a decade ago. joining them are over 32,000 american servicemembers and civilians wounded in action. struggled, many to this very day, with everything from toxic burn pit exposure to ptsd. it is with these brave servicemembers and civilians in mind, and their families and all impacted by the war in iraq, that the senate today votes to repeal the iraq authorizations

for use of military force from 2002 and 1991. the united states, iraq, the entire world has changed dramatically since 2002, and it's time the laws on the books catch up with those changes. these aumf's have outlived their use. these repeals will not harm our servicemembers abroad, nor will it hinder our ability to keep americans safe. every year we keep these aumf's on the books is another chance for a future administration to abuse them. war powers belong in the hands of congress, and so we have an obligation to prevent future presidents from exploiting these aumf's to pumble us into a -- bumble us into a new middle east conflict. i'm glad that repealing these aumf's has been a bipartisan effort, and i hope that this process can be, it should be, a blueprint for how the senate works over the next few years.

we will have amendments without being dilatory. we'll have debate without stall tactics. and we'll look -- and we will continue to look assiduously, diligently, for other opportunities to advance bipartisan bills. there are many members and staff i wish to thank for making today's vote possible, because this effort has been years, years in the making. first, thank you to chairman menendez of the senate foreign relations committee, as well as senator kaine. to watch him work on this bill, not only day in, day out, not only month in, month out, but year in, year out, because he had such firm belief that it was the right thing to do, was a joy. thank you also to senator young, who worked very hard to make this happen and brought so many of his colleagues along. and i want to thank staff who did the great work here too. megan bartly, andrew keller,

alisa, j.c. jane, nick barbash, lauren o'brien. and my staff. i am blessed with the greatest staffer in the world, as you will hear about soon enough, about one of them. lane bohdan, megan and mike. the american people are tired of endless wars in the middle east. we owe it to our servicemembers and veterans, as well as their families and all communities impacted by the war, to repeal these aumf's today. i urge a strong yes vote later this morning. on fire grants, as i said, a minute ago, we're trying to move on, on bipartisan legislation, that really matters to the average american person. and one of these is going to be the fire grants and safety act. later today, the senate will vote to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the fire grants and safety act. this bipartisan legislation would make sure that both safer and afg, two federal grant programs that our paid and

volunteer firefighters rely on remain available. if we don't extend these grants, they expire in a few months and leave our firefighters without access to the resources they need to keep our communities safe. our firefighters, paid and volunteer, are brave. they risk their lives for us. they run to danger, not away from it. we need to ensure they have the equipment and personnel necessary to do their jobs, for their own safety and the safety of those they protect. we need this especially in smaller, more rural, more suburban areas, where there often isn't enough revenue to afford more resource -- resources. i urge my colleagues to vote yes to move quickly forward on this. now, on the debt seeing, we're -- debt ceiling, we're almost a quarter of the way through 2023 and house republicans have still failed to answer the most important question of their majority -- what is your plan? what is the plan of house republicans to raise the debt

ceiling? we hear a new explanation seemingly every day, from some new corner of the republican conference, but none of it adds up to what republicans need most, a clear, detailed, and serious plan. even this week speaker mccarthy has, in desperation, tried another new and obviously failing approach. he laid out a new round of vague conditions, each one more amorphous than the last, and none of them with any specifics. then he pulled a huge number out of the sky, four trillion, without telling us where, when, or how he'd get to it. that's not a plan. everyone knows that. republicans have been utterly flailing. one day they say they'll release a budget. then they say they can't release a budget. one corner of the party says certain programs are off the table. then another group of republicans suggests the opposite. house republican leadership is

doing everything except the one thing they must do -- show the american people your plan, house republicans. show us your plan. so, when speaker mccarthy points fingers at democrats, all he's doing, so obvious, is trying to deflect from problems he has in his own conference. that is what's going on every time we hear a new idea, read a new letter or hear a new set of talking points from the republicans. they're far too divided to unite around a single proposal. the maga wing is pulling in one direction, those in the middle pulling another way. there's no consensus in the republican house caucus. the solution to the debt ceiling, however, is staring republicans in the face -- do what we have done before, democrats and republicans, under president trump, under president biden. stop the brinksmanship, stop threatening default, and work with democrats on a clean extension of the debt ceiling. no more kicking the can down the

road. speaker mccarthy, where's your plan? democrats and republicans work together, as i said, under president trump, even when democrats had the majority -- i mean, even when republicans had the majority and democrats could have blocked it, we didn't. we knew our responsibilities to the people of america who would be so devastated by a laps in the -- lapse in the debt ceiling, interest rates, car costs and home costs and so much else would go up. we did this before, working together in a bipartisan way, without brinksmanship, without hostage-taking. we should do it again this year. nominations on hold -- now, for years, for years, decades, both parties have cooperated in the senate to confirm military promotions, nonpolitical, simply the military doing its job and promoting people who deserve it. we've worked and cooperated to

confirm those promotions, to ensure our military's work continues unimpeded and our national security remains strong. but today, one member, only one member, the senator from alabama, senator tuberville, is now blocking more than 180 military promotions because he objects to women in the military accessing reproductive care. in doing so, the senior senator from alabama is putting the security of america in jeopardy and risks permanently politicizing the promotion of routine military promotions. as secretary austin warned yesterday, quote, this is our secretary of defense, former general, four-star general austin, quote, not approving the recommendations for promotions actually creates a ripple effect throughout the force that makes us far less ready than we need to be, far less ready than we need to be, senator tuberville.

this is our national security. that's what austin said. now, the senior senator from alabama claims that his hold has nothing to do with the supreme court decisions in dobles. of course it does -- supreme court digs in dobbs. of course it does. he's telling women in the military they're not allowed to make their own diswitions about their -- decisions about their health. that's wrong. i assure our senator the women in the military are more than capable of making the decisions themselves. i assure the senator that the vast majority of americans do not agree with him, that he should make the choices of women in the military who risk their lives for us about their health. it's disappointing, mr. president. it's disappointing to see that more of my colleagues on the other side have yet to call out the senator from alabama's reckless stunt. i thank those who indeed have raised their voices.

but we need more. republicans, who claim to be such great supporters of our military, must denounce the harm the senator from alabama is causing. all of us, on both sides, feel deeply passionate about issues from time to time. i respect that senator tuberville's, whose views dramatically differ from mine, has deep feelings about this. senator tuberville, i have deep feelings on certain issues. so do the other 99 senators. but we don't hold up military promotions and risk our national security because of those deep feelings. if every one of us did what he is doing, the senator from alabama is doing, the military would collapse. so, we ought to move forward. i implore my republican colleagues to speak out and prevail on the senator from alabama so we can get these promotions confirmed, get our military operating to its full capacity, and continue working

to protect the nation. and now, a trint to one of the greatest staffers i think, certainly that i've ever had, and i think the hill has had in a very long time. i would quote tina turner -- simply the best. i will spare him and his parents, who are in the gallery singing it. though we did talk about doing karaoke together at some point. well, mr. president, that's what they'll say. what they already say about the person whom i wish to honor here today at the end of my remarks. it is never, never easy to say goodbye it a member of your team. we in schumerland, as we call our group, have such a close-knit staff. we had friends. we are pals. we have each other's backs. we protect each other. it's a beautiful thing. when people leave, they're still part of our family. we see them all the time. we saw many of them last night as we said good-bye to jerry at

a local pub. an appropriate place, i might say, to do that. well, so it's never easy to say goodbye to a member of your team, but it's even harder when that person has worked with you or put up with you, depending on who you ask, for 15 years. it's still harder when that person happens to be jerry patrella. his real name is gerard anthony patrella, reflecting his irish and italian roots. i have nicknames for some staffers. he's always been gerald. even though his name is gerard. i think 15 years he's been gerald. it hasn't stuck with anyone but me. well, it's with immense gratitude, sorrow as well, that i close today by saying thank you, thank you, and bidding farewell to one of the very best

to ever do it here in the senate, our policy director jerry. jerry, you started out, i met jerry when he was a staffer for a local town official. i said boy, this guy's good. we're always on the lookout, myself and two great chiefs who i am so grateful for, mike lynch and martin brennan, two tough irish guys who kept this jewish kid going forward for a long time. anyway, we always are looking for good staff. we saw this guide and say we got to get him. brennan sat down with him, said oh, he's good. i sat with him, he reminded me last night i had him drive to come talk to me before the super bowl of the giants and patriots, the first one. they won two, i remind my friends from massachusetts and new england. and i met him and i said oh boy.

so jerry began running our long island office. he did an amazing job. an amazing job. so good that after he was -- had done four years there and whatever jerry does he works his heart out. never burns himself out because he has incredible energy but he works his hard out. it was a time for a change so we asked him to be director, a new position, economic director in washington. the number of jobs and things he created was just amazing. and then of course he became our policy director and when i became the majority -- when i became the leader, he became the policy director of the whole senate. so he did amazing things there. as i've said before, rarely, rarely can you say when someone leaves that they have -- no matter what else they do in their lives, they have so benefited millions of americans, many of whom have seen the

benefits already, $35 insulin for medicare, and many more who will see those benefits in years to come. they may not know what jerry petrella did if but we do. we do. he changed the world. his work on such important -- you know, we had the greatest two years that this senate has seen. we led the country. we led the party. we led everybody in doing this with the i.r.a., chips and science bill, the pact act, gun bill and so much else. marriage equality. it wouldn't have happened without jerry petrella. that's about the greatest compliment you can pay to somebody. so, jerry, thank you. thank you for never giving up on me after all these years. thank you for coming to the office every single day and

pushing, pushing, pushing. he's not only brilliant, he not only comes with good ideas but he's a jack hammer, rat tat, tat, tat. keeps pushing until he gets it done. thank you for doing that. for setting the tone, our vision, executing in good times and bad. thank you for working to the bone, to find a path forward to pass our agenda, especially when it seemed out of reach. so thank you. and i don't want to neglect the fact that he has deep feelings on so many different issues. and he had the luxury and the ability to get those done. so i also thank jerry for staying true to himself and his values as he worked in the maelstrom that is senate legislating on such important bills. jerry is a man with fire, on fire with love for his country.

love for the issues, love for the work. and so thank you, jerry. thank you to jerry's parents. as i mentioned here in the gallery. thank you to george who had both of his parents often in the office for many long hours, cute little george. and our great legislative director megan tyra. jerry, thank you for all these great years. you'll always be in our family. you'll always have a place here in the senate. my very best on the next wonderful chapter in your life. god bless you. i yield the floor.

i will start at the end to say that from our substantial to work that we've done thus far five instances of fraud or misuse with respect to the direct budget supported. starting at the beginning there is a multi tiered response and oversight framework in place

with many different organizations reporting in providing oversight, starting with the government of ukraine and the ministry of finance. the u.s. government direct budget support is going through the world bank through three different trust funds. the major one with maturity and money is going through is operated on a reimbursement basis. once the expenditures are made and they're determined to be eligible by the government of ukraine they are then submitted to the world bank and the world bank reviews those expenditures for eligibility as the trustee. on top of that as you mention usb id the agency is doing its own oversight and monitoring as an owner of this programming and agency which the money is flowing through. that contract with deloitte as you mentioned to do capacity building and monitoring in ukraine to help build up the interim capacity of the government of ukraine to do that work. additionally usaid has partnered with gao, not the ig, to do capacity building and training

for external auditors and supreme audit agencies within ukraine. on top of that usaid oig is providing oversight and where wr role is important is looking at the complex structure that's in place in identifying any gaps, any weaknesses and most importantly in providing an independent assessment of the monitoring and reporting that is being done. so to date our offices issued three reports already are direct budget assistance and we have two mcaleenan worked on right now. additionally, we have memoranda of understanding usaid oig with the world bank, their integrity of us and internal audit office, so that we have ease of access and constant discussions with her internal compliance in investigative bodies. so with all of those areas that are multiple people performing oversight and our job is independent body is to access it were set. >> thank you. putting this mechanism in place

that would help prevent an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure has really helped prevent i think fraud, waste, abuse and that's why getting these positive reports from all three of you. so with that i now recognize the acting ranking member ms. manning. >> thank you very much, mr. cha. it is in our national interest and it is interest of the free world that the united states, our allies and our partners continue to abide robust support for the government and the people of ukraine. we must stand firmly with strong democratic ukraine against the brutal war of aggression by russia and autocratic leader putin. in order to ensure that the support we provide is as effective as possible, it's critical that we have strong and timely oversight. i appreciate the detailed% mechanisms that you each app

find in your testimony, as well as the coordination among you that is evident. one thing that is essential for proper oversight is sufficient and well trained professional staff you stated in your testimony that you need increase staffing but are hampered by the current selection of appointment requirements which at months to the onboarding process for new hires, and that this issue needs a legislative solution. can you describe that problem as was a can of logistics solution you like to see? >> thank you so much for that question. absolutely. having the qualified professionals on staff to do this work is incredibly important. we are so fortunate at state oig to have a very dedicated, very talented staff that we have a global mission and ukraine is just a part of that. we have to make sure we're staff and resources in a way that allowed us to give the attention that is required to the

situation in ukraine while still advancing a global mission. as you said some of the federal government hiring authorities that we currently have do take a long time to onboard people and so what we're looking for our flexible hiring authorities, the sorts of hiring authorities that we have in the context of overseas contingency operations, the ability to bring on temporary and searched after support this work, and something else that i think could be important is extending the time of the to build the supplemental have been given. data set to expire at the end of fiscal year '24 and i think we expect oversight role will extend beyond that and so to get the right people on board and get them engaged in doing this work i think we'll be looking both for those direct hiring and flexible hiring authorities as well as potentially an extension of the time available of the existing supplemental funds. >> in your opinion with these

changes require legislation or are these administrative issues that can be addressed with rule changes or agency changes? >> myerson is they would be some of them would require legislative solution. we have been in contact with subcommittees to talk about what that language might look like. >> inspector general storch, do you experience the same issue and would you agree the state of legislative solution? >> so, thank you for the question first of all and let me thank you as well for the support we have gotten from congress, which we can put into good use and carry out our oversight. like diana we have a lot of things going on. ukraine is very much a job one and that support is enabled us to do that while maintaining all of our other oversight responsibilities. in terms of future hiring flexibilities, in our case we are probably not quite, don't need quite as many different ones as state perhaps, , but we have identified one area where

they could be some additional flexibility in the area of direct hiring authority at would be an assistant and we had been engaged with the hill to talk about what that would look like. i wouldn't also legislation as well but is something that would be helpful just enable us to be able to be more agile and flexible in getting staff on board. i thank you for the question. >> ms. angarella and no sure nodding your head. is this an issue in your capacity as a? >> yes. i would come not to restate what diana and rob lowe said but is probably worth a look that of an exclamation point that staffing, we spent a money through staff as igs, that's what we do. when we are graciously appropriated money to do our important work bring on staff call? the presiding officer: we are not. mr. durbin: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, the eveptses this week in nashville, tennessee are still verb -- events this week in nashville, tennessee, are still fresh in our minds.

the fact that a shooter went on the campus of a christian school, a school for children, little children, this person who went on that campus blasted her way into the building and then took the lives of three 9-year-old children and three adults who were principal and teachers in the school. it is heartbreaking to think that we are reliving this scene over and over again where our children who are sent by their loving parents off to school, lunches in hand, never came home. never came home. we don't know all the details yet of the shooter or the weaponry which she owned at the time or used in the event. but we do know that there were weapons that were very familiar with. one of course is the ar-15, the

military assault-style weapon that has sadly become so popular in america. this morning's "washington post" had an editorial which touched me personally, and i wanted to share this morning on the floor. and i'll quote from it. the editorial board wrote, these attacks are always heart-wrenching but they're not surprising anymore. neither the massacres themselves nor the weapons used to carry them out. ten of the 17 deadliest mass killings in the united states since 2012 involve ar-15's. the names of the towns and cities where these tragedies took place have become all too familiar. newtown, san bernardino, las vegas, parkland, uvalde, and beyond. "washington post" spells out the specific cities.

each year when this -- these mass shootings took place with ar-15's and the number of people who were killed. i'm going willdchendorainicapóss into the the recorded. las vegas nevada, 2017, an ar-15 weapon was used, 60 people were killed. orlando holace, florida, an m-16 rifle, newtown, connecticut, sandy hook elementary school, 2012, the shooter had an ar-15. is the shooter killed 27 people, including those beautiful little children. southernland springs, texas,

another ar-15, 25 people killed, uvalde, texas, another military assault rifle, 21 people killed. parkland, florida, 2018. another ar-15 killing 17 people. san person dino, -- san bernardino, california, an ar-15 killed 18 people. aurora, california, another 20 people killed, pittsburgh, ar-15 killed 11. boulder, colorado, 2021, an ar-15 killed ten. buffalo, an ar-15 killed ten it

they -- they cut it off at ten for mass shootings. in highland park, an ar-15, seven killed, dozens wounded including an 8-year-old boy who will be paralyzed for life. these are the realities of the ar-15 as it is being used. it was designed to do just this, kill massive numbers of people, of human beings. one in 20 u.s. adults own at least one ar-15. think of that. one out of every 20 americans own at least one a ar-15. that's roughly 16 million people storing roughly 20 million guns designed to mow down enemies on the battlefield with brutal efficiency. that is what "the washington post" reports. the rise in production of the

ar-15 is stunning. ar-15's accounted for 1.2% of all manufactured guns manufactured in 1990. 23.4% of the guns produced in america in 2020. 30 years later, almost one out of every four guns produced in the united states is an ar-15 military assault rifle. the ar-15 is materially different than traditional handguns. the rifle fires very small bullets at very fast speeds. the projectiles don't move straight an smooth -- and smooth through traditional handguns. their velocity turns them unstable upon penetration so they tumble through flesh and vital organs. mr. president, i thought long and hard about reading the next two or sentences in "the washington post" editorial on the floor of the senate.

i'm not going to read them. because they spell out in a few words, but in graphic details what happens to the body of a child when it's struck by one of these military assault weapons. ip can't bring myself to think -- i can't bring myself to think one of the parents might be listening to the senate proceeding and have to relive the horror of the moment. it is devastating and horrible to any human body, but certainly to the body of a small child. mr. president, think of southernland springs where the shooter armed with the ar-556, fired off 450 military bullets within minutes, killing 25 people, including a pregnant women. think of dayton, where the gunman needed only 32 seconds to hit more than two dozen people

with 41 bullets. that's because he was equipped with a 100-drum magazine. even a 30-round drum magazines xien, which is the industry -- magazine, which is the industry standard, would have forced him to reload twice. it is revealed that lives could have been saved, potentially six of the nine who were killed because of the high capacity magazine that was attached to the gun. there should be a ban on these high-capacity magazines. it is hard to imagine that you could listen to these numbers and the devastation of these weapons and imagine someone rash -- rationalizing that when our founding fathers sat down so long ago to write the second amendment, that they would face what happened in highland park, illinois and the mass shootings

so far this year and only 94 days have passed in this calendar year. over 131 smools -- smootion mass shootings, the number of deaths are astounding. to think the united states of america accepts this as part of our constitutional right, our constitutional responsibility to own a weapon, a mass-killing weapon like the ar-15, that one out of four, virtually one out of four guns manufactured in america today are ar-15 weapons. are we out of our minds to let this happen? to let children in nashville, children in connecticut, children be victimized or anyone to be victimized at a 4th of july parade or wherever it happens to be.

i listened to my colleagues. and one of them brought this up in the judiciary committee, challenging mr. mayorkas as it to whether he supported a ban of the ar-15. and the senator asked, define an assault weapon. it's an interesting challenge. we did ban it when we banned assault weapons, and the producers of these weapons changed them enough to be outside the definition. there's no question we are dealing with a moving definition and we have to be open to the reality of it. is this beyond us as a nation to define a weapon in a way that we can legitimately regulate it? who should own an ar-15. i would obviously say the military, that's what they were designed for. police, in extraordinary situations might need them. i can see that, some specialized

law enforcement agencies. why in the world does an individual need an ar-15, particularly with a high capacity magazine. it is not for hunting, it's hardly for self-defense, what is the rationale behind this? you look at the supreme court in the recent bruen decision. you wonder, what are they thinking? what is going through the mind of the supreme court justice clarence thomas as he argues that the ar-15 military assault weapon was envisioned by the founding fathers when they wrote the second amendment? they were dealing with pouterred -- powdered wigs and flint-rock rifles, they couldn't have imagined this. what are we going to do about it? obviously, the question is

what's next? i will tell you what's next. the american people are next. if they're fed up with the situation, as i am, and i know many of them are, they have to make it a condition when they vote for members of congress. currently the house of representatives is under the control of the republican party. the likelihood that they'll consider any gun safety legislation is minimal. we now have a scant majority in the senate but not enough to break a filibuster over an issue. so we have limited opportunities. what it takes is a decision by the american people to put an end to this madness. and the people that they elect to the house and senate, there has to be simple questions asked for people to understand where they are going to stand when issues of gun safety come before them. i will tell you, mr. president, as chairman of the senate judiciary committee, i am sorry we don't have the votes now to act. we need to do it, not just for the great people of this nation, but also for their children and grandchildren. i yield the floor.

a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from virginia. mr. warner: mr. president, i come here to speak on a different topic. but i want to commend my friend, the senator from illinois, for his comments. i agree with him. just yesterday my colleague and dear friend, senator kaine and i, met with four of the families who were part of one of that litany of shootings in virginia beach where a mentally deranged individual came in and brutally murdered 12, mostly city employees. a few folks were there to try to get city services, and the anguish, pain, and hurt of these four families four years after

the fact reflect that the kind of anguish and hurt that the -- the families in nashville are feeling and and so many countless others. and i commend the senator and, again, agree it is incouple incumbent -- incumbent upon us to do our job. i thank him for his comments. mr. president, i come to the floor this monger where after two weeks -- this monger where -- morning after two weeks of debate and literally the way the senate used to function, a whole host of amendments. the senate shortly is poised to take a truly notable action, voting to repeal not one but two authorizations for use of

military force. finally taking these outdated authorizations, dating all the way back to 2002, and the previous one, 1991, off the books. this is an important step for congress in reclaiming tg constitutional duties with regard to authorizing the use of military force in combat. i will give report to congress for supporting this bill and bringing this measure to the brink of passage here in the senate. as we come to the floor getting ready to take this vote, we would not have gotten here, i can assure you, without the steadfast leadership of senator kaine and senator young. these two have been partners on this effort since 2019. for senator young, given his

service as a marine in the decade right in the middle of these two authorizations, i know this fight is personal for him and i appreciate his tireless work on this. and starting off on that fight, it was a little more chal challenging, -- challenging perhaps on his side of the aisle. he has been relentless. he is through the power of his compassion and conviction convinced a number of his colleagues to join this event. and this will go down as one of senator young's most significant accomplishments, accomplishments that i worked with him as well, for example, the chips bill last year, the science bill, where he also provided enormous leadership. i thank him for that. but i would be remiss here today if i didn't spend the balance of my two or three minutes on the efforts of my great, great

friend of 43-plus years, tim kaine. i think we would all agree that without his efforts we wouldn't be here today. for the decade or a little more than a decade that senator kaine has served in this chamber, he has been the leading voice, and a lot of times the only voice, much to the chagrin sometimes of folks in my father, much to the chagrin sometimes of the obama administration, in working to push this senate to live up to its constitutional duty. that duty which is one of the most solemn ones we have, which is the exercise of the power to declare war, and ultimately to commit our young men and women, fellow americans, into combat. now, this is also very personal to tim. we both have the honor of

representing the state that has probably the highest concentration of military and veterans of any state in the country. tim also brings the experience of being a father of a marine. i remember watching nat grow up, our friends -- our families have been friends understanding e to go into the marines i don't think we were surprised, but the way he distinguished himself, serving broad deployments to africa and elsewhere, then serving back here in this country. you could always tell how proud tim and ann felt about nat's service, but you could also feel the extra burden of responsibility he felt to make sure what he owed, not only to nat, but what he owed to literally every young american who served our military.

so, this has been something that, this push has really been the kind of one of the guiding principles that has directed tim throughout his whole career in the senate. i think back to initially him raising this issue, these issues, in the foreign relations committee, back in 2013. saying it was time for congress not to simply take a passive role or be a monday morning quarterback, but more likely a sunday morning quarterback on the news shows, about our constitutional responsibility in weighing in on conflicts that were taking place around the world, that went well beyond the original authorizations of these aumf's. he constantly would try to bring up this issue.

again, many times being the only voice. i know how much he respected president obama. many times going against the position of the obama administration. now, other folks might have at some point, whether it was democratic leadership or the white house or his fellow members, said, you know, this really -- can't you get off this? this makes us all feel a little uncomfortable. and my friend tim kaine, it's hard to work with him. we are a great partner. i'm the glad three-quarters empty guy. he's the glass overfilling with confidence and hope guy. but even that constant hope and belief, there had to be times during this decade of fighting on this web he had to have lost -- when he had to have lost a little bit of faith, could this actually get done, but that relentless optimism, that belief based in his faith, that if you

keep on something people will ultimately do the right thing. and at the end of the day, that dogged determination, all that has come about in this last two weeks, is a testament to that kind of hard work. i've watched at times when he kept, year after year, kind of banging his head against the wall. again, there are a lot of us, sometimes even i felt this way, well, you know, maybe we should do it next year, maybe it's not the right time, maybe there's some other reason where this can wait a little while, it's not on the front of mind. but for tim kaine it was always front of mind. working now with our friend todd young, but his prior partners, great senators who i had the opportunity to work with.

bob corker, jeff flake. he has been just relentless. and this profile in courage, profile in doing the right thing, is a great testament to the people of virginia, and frankly to the people in our nation, that this senator keeps his eye on the ball. now, i told senator kaine i might want to make these comments. he said, but mark, we're not at the finish line. we still got to get through the house. well, i think you're going to have a remarkable vote in a few minutes, due to the work of senator young and senator kaine, and that overwhelming majority that's going to be posted here today i think will propel this action in the house, and i'm very glad to see that the speaker of the house has indicated that he will bring this legislation up. there are more debates to be had, and more votes to wrestle

down, and more amendments when it gets to the house, but at the end of the day this bill is going to become the law of the land. congress is going to take back its constitutional responsibility over the power to declare war and to put our troops in harm's way. it wouldn't have happened without the great work of senator todd young, but this debate wouldn't even have been still alive, still vibrant, still forcing us to do our job, without the relentless, tireless work of a great public servant, a great virginian, a great american, my friend tim kaine. with that, mr. president, i yield the floor.

the presiding officer: the republican whip. mr. thune: mr. president, as the winter season drew to a chest, south dakota's high school and college athletes were busy. from basketball, wrestling, to track and field, they have a lot to be proud of. the university of south dakota coyoties swept the titles for indoor track and field for the first time in program history. black hills state made a final four run in the division 2 men's basketball tournament. south dakota state wrestler tanner sloan came in second at the ncaa 2-a tournament as the jackrabbits wrestling team notched its second highest finish as a division 1 program. as i traveled around south dakota this month, i was able to see many student-athletes compete. i saw laura bruell take on the high school boys state b basketball semifinals in aberdeen. i caught the girls' class b state b basketball tournament in huron, where i saw my tometown

cap off -- hometown cap to of their historic season. i saw the south dakota state women begin their run for the tournament title. mr. president, being back in a high school gym, seeing student-athletes playing hard for the good of the team brings back good memories. it makes me reflect on how sports have shaped my life. in addition to instill important values, like teamwork, humility and service, playing sports taught me the importance of staying activity and made me a lifelong fitness enthusiast. the benefits of living an active life are well documented. it is associated with improved mental health. staying active can help prevent a host of chronic conditions, including diabetes, various cancer, heart disease, and depression. for those who do develop chronic conditions, exercise can help to manage them. for example, according to the mayo clinic physical activity

helps prevent heart disease from getting worse, and lower your risk of dying from the disease. to name another example, exercise has benefits for managing anxiety and depression. in fact, one study found that exercise may be more effective than medication when it comes to managing anxiety and depression. and the health benefits of exercise can also help individuals save money on health care as they age. one study found, here i quote "the new york times" article, that people who start to exercise before or during middle age typically save anywhere from $824 to $1874 annually on health care costs after retirement, and the earlier they start their workouts the greater those savings can be. end quote. that from a study conducted by "the new york times." unfortunately, despite exercise's significant health and financial benefits a lot of

american adults and children, either don't exercise at all or don't get enough exercise. there are a number of reasons for that, of course, but one disincentive to exercising can be the cost of some exercise equipment and programs. some of the tools that can help people be more active, like a gym membership or fitness equipment can be too costly for some americans. even registration for youth sports leagues can be expensive, making it harder for some families to take advantage of these activities' health benefits. that's why i recently introduced the personal health investment today act, or what we call the phit act with senator murphy. this allows americans to use the portion of the money in pretax health savings account or flexible spending account for fitness-related expenses. it wouldn't cover an expensive new putter or fees at a country club, but it allows individuals to use up to $1,000, or $2,000

for married couples from their hsa or fsa to invest in preventive health tools like exercise equipment or a gym membership. investments that can result in meaningful long-term health benefits as well as health care savings. the phit allows families to use pretax dollars for youth sports registration fees and some gear kids into need to participatn sports. the typical family pays hundreds of dollars a year for youth sports. many families say sports can be a strange on their budget, something that has only become pronounced as inflation has gone up. unsurprisingly, some families have had to reduce their kids' level of participation in sports because of the cost. mr. president, as i said earlier, i learned a lot playing sports growing up. i'm sure i'm not alone. youth sports are one of the best ways to build lifelong healthy habits.

they help kids build strong friendships and learn important skills and values that they carry throughout their lives. and the phit act helps reduce some of the cost weariers many families face when it -- cost barriers many families face when it comes to getting their kids involved in sports. with more and more of our life spent with technology, we can't overestimate the value of spending time disconnected from screens and being active. unfortunately, no matter how well my bracket is doing, watching march madness makes me eager to lmp ace them -- lace them up, as they say and get on the court. to be honest, i spend more time trying to keep up with my grandkids than working on my jump shot. whether playing in a rec league or with your kids, going to a gym or making a walk or run is part of your routine, staying active throughout your life is an important part of staying healthy, and with the -- with

the warmer weather inching closer it's a great time to get active. mr. president, the phit act is a commonsense way to encourage more americans to invest in cools that make fitness goals easier to attain. i'll continue to work to pass the phit act and promote healthy living for more americans. mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from indiana. mr. young: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the following senators be permitted to speak prior to scheduled votes. myself, up to ten minutes. senator kaine up to ten minutes. senator risch for up to five minutes. senator menendez for up to five minutes. and senator schumer for up to two minutes. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. young: thank you. mr. president, i'm proud to join

my colleague, the great senator from virginia, senator tim kaine, on the floor of the senate today. as we await this final vote, final passage of the repeal of the authorizations for use of military force in 1991, the gulf war, and 2002, the iraq war, i reflect on just how much work it took to get here, how much persistence, and i thank senator kaine for sticking it out. a lot's happened over the last couple of decades. 20 years ago, american soldiers were fighting that war in iraq. today they are still there. they're advising iraq's army at the invitation of the current government. 20 years ago iraq was our enemy. today iraq is a strategic partner, an ally in advancing

stability avoss the middle east. -- across the middle east. a lot has changed in the last 20 years and yet according to our laws, today we are still at war with iraq. now, this isn't just the result of an oversight. it's an intensal abdication -- intentional abdication of this body, of its constitutional role in america's national security. nm allowing it to -- and allowing it to continue is a strategic mistake. it's a mistake that disrespects the sacrifices of our soldiers and their iraqi partners as well. it's one that could endanger their work across the middle east. and it's central to our national security that we set this right. and here's why. iran has designs on a path to the mediterranean sea, the

world's leading exporter of terror wants to build a route to move manpower and material to its proxies all across the region. and once it reaches the sea, it will establish a foothold to threaten europe. this terrorism thoroughfare would run through syria, through lebanon, and of course through iraq. iran has sent many thousands of soldiers into syria to prop up dictator bashar al-assad and co-opted regions of that war-torn nation. lebanon's institutions are weak. hezbollah with iran's backing dominates many sectors of the government and the country. iraq cannot follow this path. it cannot become a satellite of iran. and iran cannot be permitted unrestricted access across the region.

now, our advisers are fortifying and working with the iraqi army to prevent this dangerous future. but we're undertaking this vital mission with a nation we are still technically at war with. the authorizations for both the 91 gulf war and 2002 iraqi freedom are both still on the books. these authorizations for long-ended wars passed almost entirely by members of congress long retired. these authorizations are outdated. they're a detriment to our national security strategy. and they're an abdication of congress' constitutional role in declaring and, yes, ending wars. in the centuries before our revolution, kings waged wars, wars that their subjects fought. reflecting on this history our founding fathers placed the

power to make war not with the executive but with this branch, the legislative branch. and it's here in our congress and the people's congress. they determine that debate and deliberation and consensus should precede a decision to go to war or to avert it. you see, the framers placed this great responsibility in our hands, our hands. and we've let it slip right through them. by allowing these authorizations to live on long past their purpose, we have forfeited the power to make and to oversee wars to the white house. and presidents of both parties, of both parties, have employed specious legal reasoning and used them as a justification for military interventions wholly unrelated to their original

missions. so here's the choice before us. we repeal these authorizations, rerestore a part of our system of checks and balances, or we let them live on, extending a permanent blank check for presidents to bypass congress and authorizing military action. that's the choice. by doing the former, we not only take a step towards realigning the function of our government with its constitution, we also send an important message to prime minister sudan any that our interests or shared, our nations, our allies that we will continue to partner with iraq to train and equip its army in their fight against isis. and that we oppose iran's violation of iraq sovereignty

and its ambitions of regional dominance, ambitions that endanger the world far beyond the middle east. and let us not forget that in case of urgent national security emergencies, even after repealing these authorizations, presidents can still as they can now invoke their article 2 war powers. in closing, i just want to underscore the heroic legislative efforts, the heroic leadership that my colleague tim kaine has shown throughout this long effort to get this legislation on the floor, to persuade those around the country that this should remain a first order priority, to persuade people in both parties that this merits our time and

our attention, that these repeal efforts are important not just to this generation but to future generations. thank you to senator kaine and his team. i want to thank my team, my amazing national security team and legislative team for their hard work on this effort as well. i want to reiterate, something i know that senator kaine agrees with, that repealing these war authorizations will give a greater voice to those whom we represent. we live with the possibility every day that our men and women in uniform could be called away to fight, to sacrifice their very lives for our freedom. we dread for that moment to come. but if it does, we must be certain that the american people are united behind the decisions

we make here and that our intentions are clear to our military commanders. by reclaiming our war powers, by restoring the open civil but passionate debates about matters of war and peace will do exactly that. and our nation and its allies will be stronger and safer because of it. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor. mr. kaine: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from virginia. mr. kaine: mr. president, first off i would like to ask unanimous consent that my state department fellow nathan lee be granted floor privileges for the duration of his fellowship with my office. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. kaine: mr. president, the united states invaded iraq following congressional authorization exactly 20 years ago, march 19 and 20, 2003.

and in that war nearly 4500 americans lost their lives. and more than 31,000 american troops were wounded, some grievously who will carry that wound for the rest of their lives. hundreds of notices of iraqi civilians were killed. i rise thinking about all of them as we come close to a vote to declare that these wars are over. it wasn't too long into the war when criticism of the decision to go to war began. there's no criticism of the heroism of the american troops who served ably, who did so well, who protected their colleagues, who protected civilian life the best they could. but there began to be criticism of the rationale for the war.

two of the rationales for this war were that iraq had weapons of mass destruction that was very convincing to many colleagues here. it turned out not to be true. and another of the rationales that was occasionally advanced was that iraq had participated in the 9/11 attack. that proved not to be true. and so much of the analysis of the iraq war looking backward over 20 years and lessons learned has focused upon the rationales advanced that turned out not to be true. but there was another challenge and today as an effort in many ways to try to fix that challenge and the challenge was this. we rushed into it. the 4500 who died, the 31,000 who were wounded, the hundreds of thousands of iraqi civilians, what we have to contemplate is the reality that we rushed into

a war. this body rushed into a war. the iraq war resolution was filed in the house in early october 2002 assigned to a committee and came out of the house in a week. the resolution was pending in the senate. no committee action. no committee opportunity for inquiry, amendment, debate. it was pending in the senate for three days. three days. the senate voted to go to war, a war that has had massive consequences with a total of three days of analysis. taking the time to be the greatest deliberative body in the world does not guarantee that we will get everything right. but short circuiting a decision, especially a decision of such magnitude as whether the united states should go to war

maximizes the chance that we as fallible humans will get it wrong. and i believe many of the challenges that we faced in the iraq war began with that rush. and i am very dedicated to the proposition, and i have been since i came here that the united states and the article 1 branch of congress, we should never be pushed into a war, and we should never be rushed into a war. the repeal of the 91 and 2002 aumfs have been on the floor for two weeks. the appeal has been pending before the body since 2019. it has had two different markups in the senate foreign relations committee where members got chances to offer amendment and debate and vote twice. the effort over the last 13 days has involved 11 votes on

amendments in this body. the declaration of war, there were only five amendment votes. we have given dramatically more time in this body to the question of whether we end two wars, one declared in 1991 and one declared in 2002 than was given to the momentous question of whether we should start a war. and i think that is a lesson that we should all absorb and learn from. i want to thank my colleagues who have been so helpful in this regard. senator young has been such an able colleague in this path from the very day he came to this body and was assigned to the senate foreign relations committee. his bonified -- his having worked with a great member of the senate, senator lugar. his marine service made him somebody who grabbed this issue

immediately. i want to thank the senate foreign relations committee leadership, senators menendez and risch, both of whom have cooperated to try to give this the attention and deliberation it deserves. i will say about senator risch, we've had disagreements along the way, but here's a man who knows how to disagree without being disagree from -- disagreeable. commundenly, yep. but not disagreeable. i also want to thank senator schumer for being committed to make this happen. also to senator warner for his p.p.e. talks when i could get down about how come i'm not able to convince anybody. he would give me p.p.e. talks -- pep talks and i appreciated his comments. the american legion, concerned veterans for america, the friends national committee on legislation, so many others, and i very much want to thank my staff, many of whom are here who have worked with me on this and probably like senator warner at some points wondered why i was

so obsessed about it and can't we move on and do something else. but i learned early that i'm not going to get my way by looks. so i just better get it by persistence and this has been one of those efforts where persistence has helped and the passage of 20 years and even the anniversary, the 20th anniversary has kind of opened a reflective moment where i think we're moving in the right direction. last thing i want to say is this. this is obviously very important to me personally on this topic. coming from a state that is so military in our focus and proudly so, being the father of a marine, that makes a difference to me. but even if this debate were about another topic, i am so glad that we've just spent time deliberating for gosh sake instead of rushing to a war in three days, we've had a very robust process of full committee consideration, of full senate floor debate, of amendments some that were easy and some that

were really hard, some that were really close and some that weren't so close. we showed that we can operate in what i have never really experiences in the time i have been here but p what i've had glances of, we can operate according to a sort of regular order, the way we should do things. regular order is kind of a phrase -- who knows what that means? -- it means deliberation. when we're making important decisions, allowing the committees to take their time to do the work, allowing committee members to shape a bill, getting a bill on the floor, giving it the time it deserves. that's what the senate has been known for since 1787. we've declined in our ability or perhaps our willingness to do it the old-fashioned way, but when we do it the old-fashioned way and we deliberate, we make better decisions. and i'm proud to have been part of of a decision-making process

that hags enabled all 1 -- that has enabled all 100 senators to participate in a meaningful way. with that, mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from idaho. mr. risch: mr. president, thank you very much. and thank you to senator kaine. i'll start with this. he's certainly -- there's a lot of things he said that i agree with and particularly that part about him not getting very far with his looks and instead going to use persistence sentence. -- persist sentence. i think he's -- persistence. i think he's absolutely correct in that regard. senator kaine has been a true, committed, good-faith warrior on this issue, as has senator young. and some of the things that were said out here are absolutely accurate and deserve to be underscored, and things that i

agree with. first of all, i really appreciate senator kaine pointing out the fact that the the deliberations on this particular repeal of the aumf to get the rule off of the books regarding the war has taken a whole lot longer and a lot more deliberation than the actual passage of it to get into the war. and it's easy to stand here and say the people were wrong that did this 20 years ago, and there's only -- i don't know how many left, there's only a handful, maybe half dozen on the floor at the time they voted for it. but in their defense, of course, they had information that was very different from the information that we have today, which is unfortunate because, as you pointed out, there's been a lot of harm done as a result of this. and so we should start with

that, and that is to the -- one -- the most important thing we do here in the congress is deliberating whether or not to send our sons and daughters into harm's way in a war. there's nothing more somber than that, and to those who actually fought in this war, the view that america has towards them of appreciation for them taking up the arms when we asked them to do so cannot be overstated. it's a tremendous sacrifice that they have made, and we owe them a lot. having said that, i come back to what senator kaine has said for a long time, if that vote were held today, i think it would be unanimous that we not pull the trigger, as was done 20 years ago. but that was then and this is now, and the information is very different. so, to the men and women in uniform, their service was

honorable and less than 1% of americans raise their hands to answer the call when this happens. we have to commend them. i support the 1991 repeal of the -- repeal of the 1991 gulf war authorization, i don't support the repeal of this 2002 aumf at this time. this needs to be repealed, there's no question about it. it should be replaced by something, and that is one of the real problems here because the debate to do that has been ongoing for as long as i've been here, and we have been unable to land on the same point to get it done. again, we mostly agree, but there's a handful of disagreements on it. so with that, i cannot vote for it at this time. iraq is -- part of the problem -- there's two problems here. one is the fluidity in iraq at this time, and the second one, senator young properly and

clearly lined out what the ambitions of iran is. the fluidity in iraq and the ambitions of iran are the two reasons why i'm opposed to repealing it at this time. iraq itself is a less-than-perfect security partner. all of us on foreign relations have dealt with that issue over and over again, as we've had ups and downs there, and they do -- they are less than a perfect partner. i have serious concerns about the influence of the iranian-aligned militias, which i know my friends do also. these are real problems. across multiple administrations, both republican and democrat administrations, the 2002 aumf has been used to address threats emanating from iraq, specifically multiple administrations have relied on this authority to address the threat from iran-backed should

iia militias, and iran is clearly the problem here. i've been in a room when these decisions were made. i've participated in those decisions. and the 2002 aumf was a factor in those decisions. should the statutory authority fall away, we're only left with the president's constitutional article 2 powers to protect americans. my colleagues on the other side of the aisle and some on my side of the aisle are quick to point out that the president's constitutional authorities are used as an excuse toss support -- as an excuse to support repeal, as we're doing here. but those constitutional authorities are unfettered and really unrestrained as far as the president is concerned. so by repealing it, instead of reasserting congressional authority, we're sellly ceding solely to the president -- we're actually ceding solely to the president, the executive branch, the sole authority, which no one

wants to do. the iranian-backed militias continue to attack us. iran has attacked american diplomats over 80 times just since president biden took office and with only a few u.s. responses. it is clear that iran doubts america's resolve. i stand here today to say to iran, have no doubts; we do have resolve. just last week relost yet another american in syria at the hand of an iranian-supported militia. it is objectionable that the administration didn't notify congress of this attack until after we completed debate on relevant amendments and had adjourned for the week. i know my colleagues who are on the other side of this issue probably have the same bad feelings about that that i do. this was not right to withhold this information from us. the biden administration talks about defending our interests and deterring iran. the administration launched a strike in retaliation for killing that american last

thursday, but in response, iran-backed militias simply conducted an even larger attack against us. the truth is, the administration is failing and has failed in its attempts to deter iran. and today we are in not a very good position in that regard. that's why this repeal sends an additional dangerous message at a poor time and further weakens u.s. engagement in the region. it is clear the region seen the biden administration sitting on the sidelines. this repeal will only add fuel to the narrative that the u.s. is disengaging from the region, which we hear all the time. we should remember that great power competition is global, not just in asia and the pacific, though of course those issues have raised their ugly head in recent years. i also remain unconvinced that the administration has conducted any meaningful consultations with iraq, israel, or other partners on the repeal of this

authority and how those reactions may affect u.s. burdens and commitments in the region. consultation with our partners is always important. finally, turning to detention authority -- for years, the 2002 aumf has been cited as authority for detention for known, captured terrorists. last week i put forward an amendment that would require the secretary of defense to certify the repeal of this authority would not harm detention authority or the u.s. litigation positions against detaining terrorists. if a court were to find that the 2001 aumf did not provide legal authority for detention, which has not been settled at this point, supplemental legal authorities like the 2002 aumf would be absolutely critical. i sincerely would like to support this repeal. i really would. and i hope to be here when we do get to repealing at some point down the line. but now is not the time for it. the realities on the ground convince me i cannot support repealing at this time. we've got to deal with the world

as it is. as a result of that, i am compelled to vote no. thank you very much, mr. president. thank you to all of those who have worked on this. the presiding officer: the senator from new jersey. mr. menendez: mr. president, this vote that we are about to take today has deep personal significance for me and for many others. for me because, as chairman of the senate foreign relations committee, i finally have come full circle from my vote in the house of representatives 21 years ago when i did not support the 2002 aumf. mr. president, i have for my 31 years in congress had a standard. if the cause is right and the nation needs it, then i will vote to send my son and daughter into war, and i will vote to send anyone else's sons and

daughters into war. but if the cause is not right and the nation truly doesn't need it, not only will i not send my son and daughter into war, i won't vote to send anyone else's sons and daughters into war. and at that time, as a member of the house, i did my due diligence with all the evidence that was available and i saw no clear and present danger, no imminent threat to the united states, and, above all, no evidence -- underline evidence -- of weapons of mass destruction. so i voted no. i was in the minority at the time, and it was in many respects a tough vote. but it was the right vote. it is significant for some of my fellow senators who also themselves, many of them have fought in the war in iraq, and i echo what senator risch said.

when our sons and daughters answer the call, they don't say, is this the right war? they just say i'm here to serve. so we honor their service in the gulf ward and the -- in the gulf toward and the war before it. it is significant for those whose sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, friends and loved ones have fought. and it is significant because for the first time in five decades, congress -- when congress repealed the gulf of tonkin resolution that we are ending a war, the first time in fivings did. -- in five decades. so today i want to talk about what we are accomplishing together as we turn the page on that war and that chapter of american foreign policy. it's taken 21 long years for this body to reevaluate the adoption of the 2002 aumf, and today we are working together -- and this is the ultimate expression of what this body

should be -- working together, democrats and republicans, to support repeal. and i want to salute the majority leader, senator schumer, for giving us the time on the floor and a process for which the weightiness of what we are doing could be fully considered, and i salute him for doing so. that makes this historic vote a bipartisan vote. with this vote, we make clear that the iraq of 2023 is not the iraq of 2003. far from being a menace to the region, today's iraq is a willing u.s. partner that seeks closer integration with its arab neighbors. with this vote, we can show the world that the united states is a strong partner, that we are not an occupying force, that we engage with partner countries when their interests are aligned with ours. this vote shows that while we still face challenges and threats to u.s. interests -- and

i agree with my colleague about the challenges of iran; no one has fought harder for over two decades on the question of meeting the challenge of iran -- but this is not about iran. this is about iraq. saddam hussein is gone. the iraq of 2002 is not the iraq of 2023. this vote shows that while we still face challenges and threats to u.s. interests, the 1991 and 2002 authorizations for use of military force do not address those threats and are not necessary for the united states to defend against them. this vote shows that congress is prepared to call back our constitutional role in deciding how and when a nation goes to war. and also when it should end wars. it also protects against future

administrations abusing authorizations that outlive their mandate but remain on the books. we can take our responsibilities once again to call if the nation needs it and the president comes and says i need an authorization for the use of force because country x is challenging the national security of the united states. we can do that but we should not allow any president to use an authorization that was never intended for country x or the circumstances of that to be the excuse to go to war without coming to congress. so i see it differently than my colleague. and to be clear, this vote has nothing to do with iran and in no way diminishes our ability to protect u.s. interests against iranian aggression. mr. president, it's taken a long time to get here. i want to commend my colleague, senator kaine, who has been a constant clarion call of our

responsibility, pricked the conscience of the committee in the senate on several occasions to get us to this point. and also to senator young, who has been joining him in that effort for their stalwart commitment to get this done and see it through to such a momentous conclusion. this is a defining moment. i urge all of my colleagues to vote to repeal the 1991 and 2002 authorizations to use military force in iraq. we owe it to those who made the ultimate sacrifice and to their families. we owe it to the servicemembers who again may be called upon to fight. we owe it to them to demonstrate that we take our solemn duty seriously and to do what is right. i'm proud that we are taking this step today. we should always be proud of the history we are making together to pass this legislation with a strong bipartisan vote. with that, mr. president, i yield the floor. mr. schumer: mr. president,.

the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. schumer: first let me thank my colleagues, our chair of the senate foreign relations committee, senator menendez, skein, who has -- senator kaine who has worked on this bill not for days, not for months but for years and never gave up hope. senator young, senator risch, and so many others who worked so hard to make this day happen. so 20 years after the start of the iraq war, the senate finally, finally, finally declares today the time has come to repeal the legal authorities that began that war in the first place. this is bipartisan, and that's one of the beauties of this. democrats and republicans join to say it has been long enough. the iraq war has long been over. these authorizations for the use of force against iraq are no longer necessary for our security. make no mistake, this vote,

repealing the iraq war powers, is one for the history books. the american people, as we know, are tired of endless wars in the middle east. every year we keep these aumf's on the books. every year that we keep them on the books is another chance for future administrations to abuse them. we owe it to the over 4,000 who died in iraq, to their families, to our servicemembers who served there, to our veterans, and all of the communities impacted by the war. we owe it to all of them to act. and there is a very good chance that both chambers can pass these aumf repeals before the end of this year so this bill can be signed into law. this is not just going to be a one-house action. we have good support in the house of representatives. the president is for it, and the odds are high that this

much-needed legislation will become law. again, i hope this process can be a blueprint for how the senate works over the next few years. we sat down with our republican colleagues, and of course it's the right of minority to offer amendments, and came to an agreement. the amendments were not dilatory. the amendments were not gotcha. they were sincere appointments to change the bill. but by allowing amendments we allowed this bill to go forward, and we would like that to be a metaphor for the future. we will look diligently, assiduously for opportunities to continue the senate working successfully on bipartisan legislation in the future. i yield the floor and ask for the yeas and nays -- no. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: under the previous order, all postcloture

time is expired. amendment number 15 is withdrawn, and the bill is considered read a third time. the question occurs on passage of the bill. the yeas and nays have been previously requested. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

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the presiding officer: on this vote the yeas are 66, the nays are 30, and the bill is passed. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. the senator from michigan. peter peter. mr. peters: firefighters rely on critical resources to keep them safe and these heros need our support as they continue

protecting our communities. the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. senators please take your conversations off the floor. the senator from michigan. mr. peters: thank you, mr. president. and that's why i urge my colleagues to support the firefighters grants, it is administered by the federal emergency agency. fire departments depend on these programs to address staffing needs, replace outdated equipment, fund fire training and education programs and invest in health screenings for firefighters in the line of duty. without these grant programs, many fire departments, especially those in smaller or more rural communities, would not be able to invest in their vehicles or equipment and what they need to protect their communities. i urge all of my colleagues to move forward with this bipartisan legislation to ensure

that our firefighters and first responders have what they need. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the motions to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby bring to a close debate on the motions to proceed to calendar number 28, s. 870, a bill to amend the federal fire prevention and control act of 1974, to authorize appropriations for the united states fire administration and firefighter assistance grant. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory qoac has been -- quorum calling has been waived, is it the sense of the senate to proceed to s. 870, to amend the federal fire prevention and control act of 1974, to authorize the appropriations for the united states fire administration and firefighter grant programs.

the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

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the presiding officer: on this vote, the yeas are 96, the nays are zero. three-fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn having voted in the affirmative, the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the motion to proceed. the clerk: motion to proceed to calendar number 28, s. 870, a bill to amend the federal fire prevention and control act of 1974 and so forth. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. ■cardin: i havenine

requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. the presiding officer: without objection. duly noted. mr. cardin: madam president, i ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule 22, the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of h.j. res. 27, which is at the desk, and that at 2:30 p.m. today, it be considered read a third time and the senate vote on the passage of the joint resolution without intervening action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. the clerk will report the joint resolution. the clerk: h.j. res. 27, joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, united states code and so forth. mr. cardin: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: madam president, i have the honor of being the chair of the small business and entrepreneurship committee here in the united states senate.

there has been a lot of activity during the biden administration that deals with our economy. the biden administration has a proud record of getting legislative accomplishments from the american rescue plan to the joint, to the bipartisan infrastructure bill, to the safer communities act, to the inflation reduction act, to chips in science bill, and the list goes on and on and on. but i want to talk a little bit about the accomplishments under the combiement for small businesses -- under the biden administration for small businesses and i'm proud of what we've been able to do. we have 33.2 million small business owners in america. they are the drivers of our economy. we say they're the backbone of our economy. i think they are also the backbone of our communities. they create jobs and they do most of the innovation that we see that makes america more

competitive and creates more job opportunities and economic opportunities. over 99% of our businesses in the united states are small businesses and nearly 50% of all u.s. employees work for small companies. so it's critically important that we pay attention to our small business. and of course it was challenged during the covid-19 pandemic. i'll just give you one example of why it's so important, giving one example in maryland. i'm sure you could give an example in every one of our states. this past friday i was at sabatino's restaurant, little italy, baltimore. we see there many times the economic growth of ethnic communities have been spurred by innovation by small companies. sabatino's is one of those restaurants iconic in baltimore today. it was started by two immigrants who started the sabatino's restaurant. it is now an iconic restaurant in baltimore where we like to go for good political discussion. it's in a pretty famous

neighborhood. it's where nancy pelosi grew up. it has incredible food. it's for good company and good food, and it's an anchor in that community for its economic growth. there are a lot of small business owners that are in that neighborhood that are continuing to provide job opportunity and economic growth and a future for little italy in baltimore. we could give many examples of that type of activity of a small company, small business that has saved a neighborhood and preserved it for its future. the biden administration has a proud record in support of small businesses. let me just give you some of the numbers. 2021 was a record year for the growth of small businesses in this country. we had the largest number of new business growth, small business growth in the history of america. madam president, it was led by women-owned small businesses, and women of color led among the

women business entrepreneurs. it's attributable to the fact that the biden administration has been concentrating on helping our small businesses, but it's paid particular attention to those small businesses located in traditionally underserved communities. that has led to programs that have helped. i'll give you one example. women's business centers. the president announced just this week, increasing the number of women's business centers in our community. when president biden took the oath of office, we had one women's business center in maryland, and it was doing really great service, helping women get through the maze of bureaucracies and obstacles that were in their way to start a small business or grow a small business. it was located in rockville, maryland, and provided great help. today we have four women's business centers in maryland, one located in salisbury, which

is a rural part of our state, to help women business entrepreneurs in rural maryland. we have one at morgan state university, an historic black college in maryland, and it's an health care but that has -- it's an hcbu that provided tremendous opportunities for minority business owners. we recently opened another women's business center at bowie , in the washington area, in prince george's county. these are concrete steps that the biden administration has taken to not only grow our small business opportunities in america, but to make sure that we pay attention to those who have been left behind in the past. so let me just give you another example of how we have delivered through the biden administration to help our small business community. we delivered for the people, for individuals like cal

williams of los angeles who founded royal man solutions. after he was released from prison, carl heard about the minority business development agencies education for formally incarcerated persons center in los angeles. his dream of becoming a third-generation carpenter and making his father proud took flight through this program. carl explains, and i quote, the information that the mbda center afforded me was invaluable, teaching me the elevator pitch, understanding my competition, standing out as a custom furniture builder and knowing my value. all their advice was an integral part of my growth and development in the business world. one of the great accomplishments of the biden administration was to help our returning citizens, those impacted under our criminal justice system, to give them an opportunity, and they're taking advantage of that

thanks to the biden administration. also in the biden administration was the passage of the bipartisan infrastructure package. through the bipartisan infrastructure investment and jobs act, we were able to pass legislation that establishes in statute the minority business development agency that carl depended upon, the mbda. we authorized $110 million per year for the agency through fiscal year 2025 and elevated the office by creating an under secretary position to lead the agency. the funds will expand the geographic reach of the mbda by authorizing the creation of offices and rural business centers and creating the parent j. mitchell entrepreneurship grants program to support minority entrepreneurs at hcbu's and msi's. i particularly like the program being named after the former congressman parren mitchell from

baltimore and was responsible for our first efforts to set aside to help small businesses, minority small businesses. we delivered for founders like miles bar, richard lunt and vladimir who envisioned a world where they can help our carbon footprint. they have started producing smaller size windows that help reduce our total national energy consumption by up to 12%. thanks to the funding from the small business innovation research or sbi program, as we all know it they were able to spin out of m.ism t. and -- out of mit and embark on this private endeavor. in the 117th congress with president biden's leadership, we were able to extend the life and improve the sbir and sttr programs. the sbir, sttr extension act of

2022, the small business innovation religious, -- research, small business technology programs were reauthorized. the legislation includes language that ensures the largest sbir's and sttr's were adequately transitioning and commercializing their technology. these actions that we take have real consequences. these are companies that are, need to have that ability to participate in government research. that's what the sbir program and sttr program does. the federal agencies that have the largest amounts of research must engage smaller companies. now guess which agency is the strongest proponent of the sbir program that we reauthorized under president biden's leadership? it's the department of defense, because they know these small, innovative tech companies are

going to give them the technology they need to keep america safe. and they are. i look at my own state of maryland, where we are blessed to have so many high-tech companies that are working in defense, working in health care, working in communications, working in the environment and energy. and thanks to our actions, these companies can now grow, do their work and help our country solve our problems through the passage of the sbir, sttr extension act of 2022. the biden administration delivered for veterans, women entrepreneurs, rural communities and the mom and pop shops that keep our communities vibrant. because of covid-19, we knew this was not a time to sit back and watch the small businesses we love close their doors. instead we rolled up our sleeves, took care of main street, and while we've not seen many small businesses close -- we saw too many small businesses close, we saw many

of them come back stronger than ever before. and entrepreneurs did the same. in a remarkable comeback under the biden administration, we have seen 10.5 million new business applications making 2021 and 2022 record years. through the inflation reduction act, we helped small businesses reduce their energy costs while improving their environmental sustainability and through the bipartisan infrastructure investment and jobs act, small businesses across the country will see the help they need to modernize the way they do business in order to grow and succeed. look, i want american entrepreneurs and small business owners to know that they should dream big. our nation is on path to make those big dreams a reality. and i am very proud of the progress that we've been able to make during these past two years. i'm looking forward to working on behalf of small businesses in this congress with my partner,

senator ernst, on the small business committee. i just went to small business -- i want the small business owners of america know that we're on their side and we're going to continue to provide the help so that they can help america grow. they are the backbone of our economy and the backbone of our communities, and we stand with them. with that, madam president, i would yield the floor. a senator: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from new mexico. mr. lujan: i come before this chamber alongside my colleagues to talk about the importance of our small businesses in new mexico and across the country. i also want to thank the chair of the small business committee, mr. ben cardin, for the work that he has consistently done.

his leadership in this space, but his understanding of what's happening across the country and the need to fight alongside our small businesses to make things better for them. so i want to thank the chairman as well. for the past two years senate democratic majority and the white house have made it our mission to support and revitalize the small businesses that are the backbone of our local communities. we've been hard at work building economic security for the middle class, putting people back to work, and investing in the american dream. i know every senator in this chamber, and all americans have a small business they depend on to get from one place to another, from one day to the next. for me, one of them is in santa fe, new mexico, midtown bistro, an incredible location run by a very extraordinary family. any time you want to go, you

just go down to midtown bistro. this was the dream of restaurant owners ediman catanak, melissa salazar to make folks feel at home, and they do. but when the covid-19 pandemic hit, restaurants and small businesses all across america struggled to make ends meet without daily customers or revenue. midtown bistro, like so many family-owned small businesses looked to the federal government and received a grant to keep things running, fulfill payroll each and every week. melissa said that without those funds, they would have had to close their doors after decades of serving the santa fe community. nanchg -- nanchgfully -- that didn't happen. their story is the story of thousands of small business owners who earned grants funding

from the federal government in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. we are extremely proud to have secured more than $169 million in restaurant revitalization funds for restaurants like theirs throughout new mexico, and that does not include everyone. one of the first things congressional democrats did when president biden took office two years ago was expand the paycheck protection program, the economic injury disaster loan program, and the shuttered venue operators grant program. these expansions helped the smallest -- especially until rural areas who are still hurting from the pandemic try to get back on their feet and keep their doors open. democrats have always made it a priority to help folks who need it most. this kind of relief is vital for keeping the heart of america's economy alive.

for a lot of people it's the late-night diner that serves up the best cup of coffee in the country before the monger work shift -- morning work shift begins or the local could beller, -- cobbler or the plumber you can call any time during the night to fix a leaky pipe. all of these small businesses started with a dream, a desire to make things better, to help people. i know the heartbreak covid-19 pandemic brought to local businesses, however, in the face of a nationwide tragedy, our small businesses didn't throw in the towel and call it quits. instead they got creative like mid-town bis row found -- bistro found a way to reach businesses

and we were able to keep businesses afloat during the tough times. for that, i want to say thank you to all of them. this chamber must continue to support the countless small businesses that keep our economy and our country moving forward. senate democrats will continue pushing for expanded opportunities for small businesses to access the capital and kret they need -- credit they need to start or expand businesses, which in turn will get more americans back on the job, create more opportunities and more successful ventures. one big hurdle that keeps small businesses from unlocking their full potential is not being connected to affordable high-speed internet to access the online economy. i'm very proud to be part of the team and a family that's going to make that possible for people all across the country. there's many ways we can work together, but i'm very proud of

what i learned and, again, i thank my chairman for leading the committee and driving home policies so we can act and invest in those who started small businesses. we can do more and do better, but i'm proud of how we can get things done that can make a benefit in people's lives today. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: i want to thank senator lujan for his leadership on behalf of small businesses. senator lujan is absolutely right. there are a lot of areas that is not necessarily in the jurisdiction of the small business community and one of those is access to broadband. senator lujan understands for small businesses to succeed, they have to have access to affordable high-speed internet and senator lujan has been critically important in so many different areas, particularly during covid. he want to thank him for his leadership on behalf of small

businesses and of the people of -- for the people of new mexico. madam president, we are joined on the floor by senator rosen and i want everyone to know her contributions to the small businesses. she has been a leader with a record i have gone over with the accomplishments of the biden administration. if we're going to succeed with women entrepreneurs, we need to deal with child care and today small business tools are not fully available to small business operators of changer and senator rosen is our leader to correct and do something about it. i also appreciate her knowledge and understanding and leadership on the regulatory challenges that small businesses confront and taking on that challenge to see if we can't provide some relief. i want to acknowledge her

extraordinary work on behalf of small businesses in this country. the presiding officer: the senator from nevada. ms. rosen: i want to thankernity -- ip want to thank senator -- i want to thank senator cardin and he has been a friend and mentor and encouraged me to find my voice for nevada and this country. and i appreciate his leadership. thank you. and the senator is right. small businesses, well, they are the engine of the u.s. economy. they foster innovation, they create jobs, they provide a lifeline for families. and in nevada, small businesses make up 99% of all businesses. our small business economy, it's thriving, it's increasingly diverse, allowing many nevadans achieve the american dream by being entrepreneurs and

providing for their families. these businesses, they are crucial for nevada's economy. we should encourage and support them by meacking did -- making it easier to start and operate small businesses, increasing access to capital to help them grow and succeed and cutting through that red tape that is far too often a barrier. so here in this chamber, we must focus on helping small businesses overcome the enormous challenges they face and the obstacles they experience just to get off the ground. as a member of the senate committee on small business and entrepreneurship, my top priorities have been expanding resources in support for nevada's small business, the owners, the employers, and their workers. and so from introducing a bipartisan bill to help those graduating from minority-serving institutions to open a business to sponsoring bipartisan legislation to help veterans

start small businesses in underserved communities, to urging the small business administration to open a veterans' business outreach center in nevada, i've been fighting for businesses time and time again, and i'll keep fighting. i'm also working in a bipartisan way to make small nonprofit changer providers eligible for federal resources so that they can grow, create jobs, and provide more affordable child care options in all of our communities. and this just means so much to our families. gives them so much peace of mind. and i'm going to continue as well to advocate, to open up federal loans for cannabis businesses. they're job creators in our state and in many states across the country. we can also help small businesses by reducing the burden when entrepreneurs face

when they get started. the exhaustive hoops that america's entrepreneurs have to jump through from fulfilling requirements, it can be a challenge to get those businesses off the ground. and so that's why i am proud to announce that today i'm introducing bipartisan legislation to help small businesses by cutting through the bureaucratic red tape that often prevents them from getting off the ground. my legislation would create a centralized website. this website, entrepreneurs can visit to get all the information they need from the small business administration on federal, state, and local licensing and business permitting requirements with information and resources all in one place. because i believe we should be making it easier to start a small business, and we must make sure that entrepreneurs are in the best position to succeed

right from the beginning and having them go to a one-stop website, that's a start. because i know that when we invest in our small businesses and our entrepreneurs, when we invest in our communities, when we invest in our hardworking families, well, together we create a successful future for our state and for our country. and so i urge my colleagues from both sides of the aisle to join me in cutting red tape, bringing down those barriers and increasing information access for all of our small businesses. thank you, madam president. and i yield back. the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: again, i want to thank senator rosen for her leadership and we are looking forward to taking up the legislation she has introduced. i know we're on debate of the waters of the u.s. i ask consent to put in my statement in opposition to the resolution in support of the

rule so we can have predictable that the rule provides to ranchers, and i hope that we would reject the resolution. the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. marshall: i rise in support of the -- striking down the president's waters of the united states. as a fifth generation farmer, i know how hardworking kansas farmers work daily to protect our environment and preserve our precious resources. farmers serve as our land's original and best stewards. we all want to leave this world cleaner, healthier and safer than we found it. since coming to congress, we worked hard alongside our farmers and ranchers and landowners to ensure our land is

clean and stop it from aggressive overreach. this includes working with the administration to roll back federal wotus regulations that drive up the cost of doing business for kansans and detrimental for their ability to care for their crops and livestock. as kansas farmers, ranchers, basis and even municipalities know all too well, the obama definition of wotus dramatically expanded the federal government's reach with minimal improvements in water water quality. the expansion of the wotus rule adds more regulations, more red tape and costs to every day life in kansas. this level of federal overreach is harmful and ill-advised. it's important to note that my colleagues and i requested the administration suspend the rule making this until the supreme

court completes its consideration of sackett v. the epa. this would allow congress to craft a lawful, predictable and reasonable rule, but this request that's fallen on deaf years. moving forward with this rule is the administration's attempt to revive the obama era wotus rule which was rightfully blocked in legislation across the country. as the saying goes, history repeats itself and a federal judge recently blocked the implementation of the brand knew rule in texas and idaho. my farmers in my state are bracing for the impact. one organization said, and i quote, farmers and ranchers should not have to hire a team of lawyers and consultants to determine how we farm our land. and i agree. kansan africans cansian i met -- kansas cansian after --

kansasian africans -- have talked about this. agriculture, oil and gas, energy, the housing industry, road builders, bridge builders, construction workers, and municipalities have all voiced their disapproval of the rule and the cost of the negative impacts that its adoption will have on american industries and consumers. it seems this administration only listens to radical environmentalists rather than the hardworking pragmatic voices of the people who love the land which has been handed down from generation to generation just like in my family. people who care every bit of the environment as any soul on capitol hill does. these are the same people who feed, fuel, and clothe america. this rule is the biden administration's attempt to

federalize our waters and take control of our private land and leave our producers with more questions than answers, more cost than gain. in fact, get this. mitigation costs related to the current white house wotus may cost farmers and ranchers over $100,000 per acre. the value might be 1,000, 2,000, maybe $5,000 an acre, but litigation will cost it $500,000 an acre. should a dry creek that only has water run through it during the rain be waters of the u.s.? should ditches draining into a dry creek bed be a waters of the u.s.? should water trickling off the terraces my grandfathers built 50 years ago tvo